1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of setting the timer of a cellular phone, and more particularly, to a method of setting the timer of a cellular phone by which it is possible to simply set the timer using only the volume control buttons of a cellular phone.
This Application is based on Korean Patent Application No. 99-28905, which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.
2. Description of the Related Art
In general, cellular phones include a timer. A user sets the timer and the cellular phone on which the timer is set performs an alarm function by sounding a terminating signal at a predetermined time. The alarm function used in a conventional cellular phone is performed by selecting an alarm menu from general menus using a menu selection button and setting the desired alarm time by the alarm menu using an up/down button and a setting button.
In general, a user needs an alarm to go off at a certain time for many different reasons. For example, when an appointment time is thirty minutes away, the user needs the alarm to go off after a period of thirty minutes. According to a conventional method, the time at which the alarm is to be sounded is set by inputting the desired alarm time by adding a certain time to the current time using, for example, an up/down key. The time setting is completed using a selection key and a setting completion key. According to the conventional method, it is complicated to set the time at which the alarm is to be sounded since the time is obtained by adding a certain time to the current time.
To solve the above problem, it is an object of the present invention to provide a method for setting the timer of a cellular phone so an alarm is sounded at a certain time by using only a predetermined up/down button which is also used for performing another function.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a recording medium in which a program code for performing the method for setting the alarm of the cellular phone is stored.
Accordingly, to achieve the first object, there is provided a method for setting the alarm of a cellular phone by which a user can set an alarm to sound at a determined time, the method comprising the steps of (a) checking whether a volume control button has been pressed, (b) maintaining a stand-by state if it is not confirmed that the volume control button has been pressed in step (a) and then checking whether the volume control button has been released if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been pressed in step (a), (c) controlling the volume if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been released in step (b) and checking whether a first predetermined period of time has passed if it is confirmed that the volume control button has not been released in step (b), (d) performing step (b) again if it is confirmed that the first predetermined period of time has not passed in step (c), and (e) displaying an indication of a timer setting mode on a display and starting to set the timer if it is confirmed that the first predetermined period of time has passed in step (c).
Step (e) preferably comprises the steps of (e-1) checking whether the volume control button is pressed, (e-2) maintaining a stand-by state if it is confirmed that the volume control button has not been pressed in step (e-1) and checking whether the volume control button has been released if it is confirmed that the volume control button is pressed, (e-3) setting a low speed timer if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been released in step (e-2), (e-4) checking whether a second predetermined period of time has passed if it is confirmed that the volume control button has not been released in step (e-2), (e-5) performing step (e-2) if it is confirmed that the second predetermined period of time has not passed in step (e-4), (e-6) checking whether the volume control button has been released if it is confirmed that the second predetermined time has passed in step (e-4), (e-7) setting a high speed timer if it is confirmed that the volume control button has not been released in step (e-6), (e-8) checking whether a third predetermined period of time has passed if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been released in step (e-6), (e-9) completing the setting of the timer if the third predetermined period of time has passed in step (e-8), (e-10) checking whether the volume control button has been pressed if the third predetermined period of time has not passed in step (e-8), and (e-11) performing step (e-8) if it is confirmed that the volume control button has not been released in step (e-10) and performing step (e-6) again if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been pressed in step (e-10).
A cellular phone device in accordance with the invention includes an alarm device that provides an alarm at a given alarm time provided by a user of the cellular phone, an alarm timer that triggers the alarm device to provide an alarm upon expiration of said alarm time, a volume control button for controlling the volume of the cellular phone and for controlling the alarm time provided by the user of the phone. Further, the alarm time is input to the alarm timer by the user by manipulating the volume control button.
Additionally, a cellular phone in accordance with another embodiment of the invention includes a control device that continuously determines if the volume control button has been pressed and further allows for a volume control operation to be performed if the volume control button has been pressed and released. Further, the control device repeatedly checks if a first predetermined period of time has passed in the event the volume control button has been pressed but not released. If the first predetermined time has passed, a display indicates a timer setting mode and the control device allows an alarm timer setting mode to begin.
A key scan algorithm used for a microcomputer system including a keyboard is preferably applied in order to check whether the volume control button has been pressed in step (a).
To achieve the second object of the invention, there is provided a computer readable recording medium in which a program code for performing the method for setting the alarm of the cellular phone by which a user sets an alarm to sound at a desired time is stored, wherein the program code performs the steps of (a) checking whether a volume control button has been pressed, (b) maintaining a stand-by state if it is not confirmed that the volume control button has been pressed in step (a) and then checking whether the volume control button has been released if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been pressed in step (a), (c) controlling the volume if it is confirmed that the volume control button has been released in step (b) and checking whether a first predetermined period of time has passed if it is confirmed that the volume control button has not been released in step (b), (d) performing step (b) again if it is confirmed that the first predetermined time has not passed in step (c), and (e) displaying an indication of a timer setting mode on a displaying means and starting to set the timer if it is confirmed that the first predetermined period of time has passed in step (c).